1. Use sales flyers and shop for the best bargains. You can plan your menus around the bargains, or use your shopping list. Always use coupons.

2. Shop loss-leaders. These are the items the store loses money on but they draw customers. They are usually placed on the ends of the aisles. Again, you can plan your weekly menu around these items.

3. Shop at Wal-Mart. They will match the prices in the sales flyers and it is one stop shopping. Keep a notebook with prices of items you buy most often to help keep track of bargains and to compare prices.

4. If you shop in bulk, know prices. Just because it is bigger, doesn’t mean it is a bargain. And they don’t let you use coupons at Sams and Costco.

5. Know which stores use Rainchecks and use them for sales items. If they run out of the item during their sale, they may let you have that same item later when it is in stock.

6. I will repeat it. Use coupons, but use them effectively. Take a calculator with you if needed, but always work out if you are getting a better deal with the coupon or another brand without the coupon. Don’t use coupons just because you have them. If it is an item you don’t normally use, don’t bother with the coupon.

7. If you find refund/rebate coupons, these are also good. You can use them to get free items or free coupons.

8. Use a shopping list and stick to it. Plan a menu and take stock of what items you need. Clean out freezer and refrigerator before you shop so you will have room and see what items you have on hand. You might not need another chicken or package of hamburger.

9. Write a list on an old envelope and keep the coupons that go with it inside the envelope.

10. Don’t shop for groceries while you are hungry. You will buy more and most of it will be junk.

11. Shop with a notebook, listing clothing sizes. Carry swatches of color samples and measurements for decorating projects. This would be handy for when you come across unexpected sales or go out to yard sales.

12. When shopping for a large item such as a house or car, take Polaroid’s of your options to review at home, when you’re not under pressure.

13. When shopping for pre-bagged produce, always weigh and choose the heaviest ones. The weight marked is the minimum weight required, so always try to get the most for your money. If you are buying a head of lettuce or broccoli, for an example, for a set price, weigh to find the largest one.

14. Buy pasta sauce in cans rather than in glass jars. They weigh the same and the cans are cheaper than the glass.

15. Buy bags of frozen vegetables instead of boxes. You will get more for the money.

16. Avoid high prices for small containers of spices and herbs. Buy large containers and share with your friends.

17. Buy large turkeys when the prices are low. Ask the butcher to cut them in half for easier storage and less waste for non-holiday meals.

18. Contact manufacturers with complaints or compliments. You may be rewarded with coupons for free or discounted products.

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2. Always use coupons or discount voucher codes if you know where to check online. There are many websites out there that offer thousands of coupons to almost every online store.

3. Always keep an eye for online rebates given by retailers that can help to save a huge percentage on the selling price. Simple fill out a little form and cut out the UPC code. Use these rebates and save big.

4. Always look out for sites or items that come with free shipping. As mentioned above, shipping fee is normally 20% more than the item price itself. Saving on your shipping can be tremendous if your item costs a lot.

5. Do not miss out those state retailers that do not charge sales tax for your items for your state. The money saving here could be significant too.

With money saving tips above and if you have practiced them well, you can add up and see how much you have easily saved for yourself. The best part is, you don’t even have to walk into a store to save a bundle. Spend some time to search online and I am sure you can find more money saving offers and tips out there. Start saving and enjoy living debt free today!

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With just a little legwork, you can purchase many common household items for pennies on the dollar, if not entirely free. The trick is discount layering; using manufacturer’s coupons combined with individual store rewards and coupons deals.

Begin shopping frugally in your Sunday and Wednesday newspapers. Valuable tools are the coupon books and advertisements found inside. Match up the manufacturer’s coupons with the sales and rebate offers at your local grocery and drug stores.

By far, Walgreens has the easiest and most comprehensive rebate program, so it’s is a great store to get your feet wet! As you are going through the weekly advertisements, you will notice in the ad that there might be a mention of “Register Rewards” or a “Free with Rebate” deal.

“Register Rewards” are instant refunds that print at the register when you buy an item or a certain mix of items. For the rebates, you can stop in the store or view the rebate catalog online to save yourself a trip and get one so you can plan your purchases ahead of time.

With the ad and rebate catalog in front of you, see if any coupons match up to the deals and rebates.

For example: Recently Walgreens had Revlon cosmetics as a free-with-rebate deal, but there was also a manufacturer’s coupon for a Revlon product that was in the paper recently. So not only was the item free, you also made a dollar or two on the coupon. But that’s not the best part. When you submit your rebate, Walgreens offers you the choice of receiving your purchase price back in a check or in a Walgreens gift card (essentially store credit). If you choose the gift card option, they give you a 10% bonus. By taking advantage of this too, they covered your sales tax and then some.

Rite Aid’s rebate program is similar to Walgreens, but it’s a lot more complicated. There are only certain days you can purchase products to receive the full rebate amount. You must read the rebate catalog carefully, since it’s really easy to make an error.

But they do accept manufacturer’s coupons like Walgreens, and they offer the 10% bonus as well. The key to discount layering is to read the fine print, and realize that not everything is a great deal!

CVS also has good deals on occasion, but their free products are refunded in the form of “Extra Care Bucks” that expire within a few weeks of issue. These are similar to Walgreens’ “Register Rewards.” It’s nice that you don’t have to wait for the gift card to arrive in the mail, but if you miss the expiration date, the money you originally spent is lost forever.

We here at www.Beattherecession.com will be continuing this in a series of articles, for coupon clippers everywhere! Be sure to sign up for the newsletter to be informed of new articles and helpful tips and tricks for you to Beat The Recession.